Florinda Mandlaze

Community Vaccinator

Custodio Machel

Youth Community Vaccinator

“I am very enthusiastic about the benefits of vaccinating to improve income and nutrition in my community.”

MOZAMBIQUE

Florinda (pictured right) has been a community vaccinator since 2002. As well as vaccinating her own flock of 18 chickens, Florinda vaccinates most of her neighbour’s birds. In each campaign she vaccinates around 1,500 chickens, charging 1 metical per chicken. This works out to be around US$30 income per campaign. Sometimes people pay her in beans and other products when they can’t afford the vaccine. She is fine with this, as she can use the commodities to feed her family.

Florinda is a single mother with three children. Her two girls are now high school age and need to go to a school three hours from the village. With the money she earns from vaccinating chickens, she can afford to send her children to school and to pay for them to stay in accommodation close to the school. Florinda’s family eats chicken regularly now, although they only eat eggs on special occasions. She also sells the chickens when she needs money for these occasions.

Florinda’s neighbour Custodio (pictured left) has only recently been trained as a community vaccinator. Although he is one of the youngest vaccinators in Manjacaze he is already vaccinating around 1,000 chickens each campaign.